Franco Manca, Wimbledon
In 1986 Francos was a pizzeria in Brixton Market owned by, you guessed it, a bloke called Franco. In 2008 he had enough and asked his friend Giuseppe Mascoli if he wanted to take it over. Giuseppe and his friend Bridget Hugo, an artisan baker, took it over and named it Franco Manca, (Italian for “Franco has disappeared") in homage to Franco’s hard work.
Giuseppe and Bridget decided to remodel the pizzeria (building a special oven) and the pizzas themselves (slow-rising sourdough) and creating a simple menu with quality ingredients. Giuseppe, originally from Positano, was strongly influenced by Neapolitan cuisine in his attempts at an experimental pizzeria.
Neither of them had ever run a restaurant before, but somehow it was a success. People began making pilgrimages for pizza to the Brixton Market Hall and with regular queues around the market, another one soon opened in Chiswick.
Today many neighborhoods across the UK have local Franco Mancas, but we have remained true to our roots as small purveyors of local ingredients, fresh pasta every day and Neapolitan-inspired cuisine.
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